Pakistan announces ban on cryptocurrency services

Ayse Gous Pasha, Pakistan’s Deputy Minister of Revenue and Finance, said that online cryptocurrency services will be banned to prevent illegal digital money transfers.

According to national media reports, Pasha, in a statement at the Senate Standing Committee on Finance meeting, stated that under the terms of the Financial Action Task Force against Money Laundering (FATF), the services of Cryptocurrencies available on the Internet prevent illegal transfers of digital money.

Noting that the Central Bank of Pakistan and the Ministry of Information Technology are working on a cryptocurrency ban, Pasha said, “Islamabad will never legalize cryptocurrencies.”

Referring to the FATF requirement that cryptocurrencies not be legalized, Pasha recalled that Islamabad was removed from the FATF gray list in October 2022.

Central Bank Director Sohail Cavad also stated that crypto money is a virtual currency and 16 thousand types have been created so far, saying that the $2.8 trillion market has shrunk to $1.2 trillion. .

The Central Bank of Pakistan banned cryptocurrency trading and mining in April 2018. However, despite this ban, the demand for cryptocurrency continued to rise.

Pakistan, which was included in the “grey list” in June 2018 by the Financial Action Task Force on the Prevention of Money Laundering (FATF) of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) on the grounds that “financially supports terrorism.” and “does not prevent money laundering”, October 21. It was removed from this list in 2022. (BRITISH AUTOMOBILE CLUB)